Maman
by MegaSilver
Summary: Zordon chose extraordinary teenagers to save the world, but they're teenagers nonetheless. And with families as screwed up as Kimberly's and Tommy's, there's no telling what the fallout could be when they make stupid mistakes. Will the mere forces of nature put the Pink Ranger out of commission?
1. Bringing Home the Boys

_**Disclaimer:**__ Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and all related characters belong to Saban Brands. This is a nonprofit work of fanfiction belonging to the author. As for the pop culture reference… it comes from the movie _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_ (yes, I mean the MOVIE, not the dreadful TV show), which belongs to 20__th__ Century Fox._

_**Author's Note:**__ This is a completely different take on the Rangers' family lives from what I portray in other stories, notably "Tragedies and Triumphs!" I just watch the episodes and look for jumping-off points from regular continuity. There's any number of things you could do!_

_**Continuity:**__ Takes place following "Return of an Old Friend part 2." Not related to any of my other stories!_

_**Maman  
**_Part I: Bringing Home the Boys  
**by MegaSilver**

Kimberly emerged from the Angel Grove Gym and Juice Bar with her mother, her father, and her mother's boyfriend, laughing at the mess the latter three were in following the most obnoxious food fight she had ever witnessed.

"My good scarf!" cried Kris Hart.

"Oh, Mom, it's machine washable," Kimberly sighed, trying to stay in a good mood. The truth was, her mother exasperated her fairly regularly these last few years. She was just happy to see her parents both present and next to each other again for Parents' Day, even if it were only for a while.

Terrence Hart wiped a bit of cream off his shoulder and licked his finger. "Well, flying tarts aside, it was a great day, sweetheart. Thanks so much for bringing us out here."

Kimberly beamed.

"It was nice," agreed Mrs. Hart. Her boyfriend Jack Leary put an arm around her shoulder. Kimberly wanted to smack him in the gob. Her happy expression began to melt just a bit.

Mr. Hart looked at his daughter and seemed just a bit taken aback by her change of humor. "Well, ah… I'd better be going. Off to Seattle for work tomorrow"

"On Saturday?" Kimberly was surprised to feel momentarily sad… and then strangely indifferent.

Mr. Hart sighed and nodded. "Afraid so. There's a big trade fair going on and this year I was named the lucky representative." He rubbed Kimberly's cheek a bit. "You coming with Davie to my place next weekend?"

"Maybe; I don't know what I'm doing next weekend yet." The mood was definitely beginning to chill.

"Okay. Come by whenever you like, okay?" Mr. Hart kissed Kimberly on her cheek and she tried to smile in return.

"Right," interpolated Kimberly's mother. "Bye, Terrence; have a good flight."

Almost as soon as Mr. Hart was gone, Tommy appeared. "Hey, Kim! Hi, Mrs. Hart. Just wanted to say goodbye and nice to meet you."

"Oh, thank you; it was nice meeting you, too!" Mrs. Hart smiled and then looked a little concerned. "Your parents didn't come?"

"Ah, no, something came up," Tommy replied quickly, and a bit evasively. "Got me out of the house though, got a chance to see everybody I haven't seen in a while." He winked at Kimberly and she giggled just a bit.

Maybe the day would end okay, after all.

"Umm, hey, you want to come have dinner with us?" Kimberly asked hopefully. "I mean, Mom, can he?"

"Oh, sweetie, I forgot to tell you: Jack and I are going out to dinner and Davie's sleeping over at Cameron's house tonight. But there's a pot roast in the fridge; if you two want to work on that and then go to a movie or something, feel free! We can give you a ride if you want. I mean, if it's okay with your parents."

Tommy's eye seemed to twinkle. "Ah, they'll be fine with it."

* * *

At seven o'clock, Kimberly and Tommy were watching TV in the living room as Kimberly's mother, dressed up to the nines, sailed down the stairs, Jack following her. "Bye sweetheart. Pot roast should be ready in about another hour and a half. Don't wait up for me, okay?"

Tommy noticed Kimberly smiled just a little too wide. "Okay. Bye, Mom. Bye, Jack."

"Bye, you two," bade Jack.

"Bye, Ronnie!" Mrs. Hart called to Tommy.

_What the heck?_ Tommy tried to take it in stride as he waved. "Bye!" Then he turned to Kimberly, an expression of bewilderment on his face. "Your mom thinks my name is 'Ronnie'?!"

Kimberly snorted. "It's possible she thinks _my_ name is Ronnie!" she sulked.

"Real quality-timer, huh?" Tommy sighed. He could relate, actually, but he didn't want to start in on that. He wasn't in a broody mood at all; it'd been a great day: he'd gotten his powers back, he'd heroically saved his friends and the world, and here he was with a pretty girl, home alone in front of cable T.V..

_I must protect this house!_

What to say now?

He took a risk. "Your dad seems nice."

Kimberly rolled her eyes. "Actually, if you want to know the truth I'm almost madder at my dad than at my mom. They have joint custody: he gets Dave on Monday nights and every other weekend, but I get to choose since I'm over twelve." She sighed. "I just wish we could be a normal family, you know?"

Tommy blinked a bit. "Well… when you think about it, what's really _normal_?"

Kimberly hit a button on the remote control. The channel switched, and an old episode of _Leave It to Beaver_ appeared on-screen. "Something like the Cleavers, I guess."

"Come on, Kim, that's just TV. I mean, no one's really like that, are they?"

"Well, you know, a year ago I would've said _Spiderman_ and _Superman_ were just comic books, too."

"Oh." Tommy reflected briefly on that. The truth was, he had always found comic books incredibly stupid and since becoming a Ranger it hadn't even occurred to him to compare their situation with that of any masked marvel. It had just seemed so… _different_ to him, so much more down-to-Earth than the dark angst that permeated every page of a 'graphic novel.' But now that he thought about it, it was true: they really were, in as much a sense as any D.C. character, _superheroes_. "Good point."

Kimberly looked sadly into Tommy's eyes. "_We_ were like that. Like the Cleavers," she murmured sadly. "Mom and Dad were both there, they got along—or at least they seemed to—, they paid attention to us kids, they took us to Mass on Sunday…" She took a deep breath. "Then suddenly without warning my dad had an affair the summer after seventh grade and my mother just totally fell apart. Couldn't stand the sight of him, couldn't keep herself together. She wasn't like that before; she was always really a pro-active mom, you know?" Kimberly blinked a bit. "We used to be like _Leave It to Beaver_; now it's more like _All My Children_. I guess I kind of blame my dad for ruining all that for us. Now that he's gone… Mom's just turned all silly and shallow and obsessed with stupid Jack."

"You don't like him?"

Kimberly gritted her teeth. "He's my uncle's twin brother!"

Tommy was shocked at first. "What? Oh, you mean… your uncle, like, her sister's huband?"

"Yeah, exactly." Kimberly nodded. "Uncle Steve's awesome, though. Ever wanted proof that identical twins can turn out differently, you have it, right there! I don't think he and Aunt Corinne—I mean, my mom's sister, Uncle Steve's wife—were exactly thrilled about the whole thing."

Tommy wasn't sure how to react. "Well… I mean, isn't it better if your mom's with someone?"

"It just happened way too fast," explained Kimberly. "My mom was devastated about my dad cheating and _she_ kicked him out, even—well, sort of… he didn't exactly beg to stay—, and then two months later…" She sighed again. "I just don't understand what her deal was!"

Tommy was silent for a moment. "At least you knew what it was like to have a normal family, even for a while."

"True," Kimberly sighed. "I want to just keep _that_ memory, at least. But I know a lot of people hold it together, like my aunt Corinne and my uncle Steve, or my grandparents… and Trini's and Zack's parents, and Jason's, even—and the Scott's have _really_ been through the ropes. I don't know if Jase told you…"

"He did." Jason had related the whole story of how his parents were alcoholics and hadn't cleaned up until just a few years ago, and how his older sister was living on-and-off with their grandparents or with her unstable boyfriend in Las Vegas.

And suddenly it occurred to Tommy that perhaps those families—by and large cohesive, or having been so at one point, or having pulled through to _become_ so—might be the key to that energy and stability he so loved in this group of friends.

And how the absence of any of that might explain his own isolative posture, and his fascination with this group.

"Yeah?" Kimberly's words brought him back to the discussion at hand. He saw her pulled a knee up to her chest, prop her elbow onto the back of the sofa, and position herself to face him more directly. "You and Jase are pretty close, I guess, huh?"

"I guess." Tommy smiled, turning to look more directly himself. "He doesn't know it, but his friendship's been really valuable to me. I mean I've learned a lot watching him. And all of you. You, too."

"How so?" Kimberly asked, bouncing her eyebrows.

"Aaah…" Tommy hesitated. This was a little too psychological, especially after the conversation they'd just had. He was still just an adolescent male, and completely clueless as to how Kimberly perceived it, but it made him uneasy. "Aww, what the heck. What's it matter?"

Kimberly flashed a pouty look. "'What's it matter'? You brought it up! You can't just leave me hanging like that!"

Suddenly Tommy had an idea. His heart began pounding. _Should I? No, she'll think I'm. Aww, man, just one little peck! Won't hurt. Won't be the first time, even._ Quickly he leaned over and kissed Kimberly on the lips.

_Hoof!_

Kimberly looked a little surprised, but pleased. Tommy's heart began to race again, and he knew he wanted to lean in and kiss her again, but it wouldn't be the same adrenaline relief, now that the surprise was worn off.

No, this time a peck wouldn't do.

Fighting his urges, Tommy did what he knew to do from films and leaned in slowly. When Kimberly did the same, he broke through and locked lips. And quickly their tongues slipped through their lips and into each other's.

* * *

Tommy was a great deal taller than Kimberly, and kissing her neck while standing up was a bit of an ordeal, but she seemed to enjoy it, so he kept going.

"Tommy, I… I don't…"

Tommy panicked a bit and let up. "What? Your mom might come home?"

"No, she's gonna spend the night at Jack's. Then she's gonna tell us she crashed at Grandma's because it was late and blah blah blah. Like she thinks I was born yesterday." Then she snapped back into the moment. "I mean… I don't know how… I've… I've never done this before."

"Aww, it'll be okay, Kim," Tommy assured her, not really believing that himself.

"Ha-have you ever…?"

Tommy gulped. "No."

They stood there in awkward silence for a moment. Then Tommy pulled Kimberly onto his chest. It was a long shot, and cliché, but maybe it was worth it. "Kim, just think. The Dramole. The Dragon Dagger. The Power Coins. Kim, we almost _died_ today." He pulled back to look into her eyes. "Just let's don't stress about anything. We're supposed to be relaxing."

Kimberly still looked nervous. She bit her lip and didn't say anything.

Tommy nodded toward her full-size bed. "Together, for example… or not, if…"

Kimberly leaned upward.

_Green light_, though the Green Ranger as he again began kissing his girlfriend.

* * *

A half-hour later, Kimberly and Tommy sat across from each other at the dining table under dim lights, munching on the pot roast. It had come out just perfectly.

Kimberly had pinned up her hair and wrapped a throw around her body. Tommy had tied a bedsheet around his waist. And that was all they were wearing.

After a couple of bites, Tommy chuckled. "I'm sorry," he said. "I had no idea what I was doing."

Kimberly covered her mouth with her hand, suppressing laughter. "I had no idea what to expect." She took her water glass and held it up. "Cheers?"

Tommy clinked his glass against hers. "Cheers!"

After the toast, Kimberly frowned. "You know… my mom has a nice bottle of French wine…"

Tommy's eyes went wide. "You think?"

"I don't know. What do you think?" When Tommy didn't answer right away, she seemed to back down. "Well… she's probably saving it for something with Jack."

"Yeah. Besides, if there's an emergency and we have to Morph—"

"Right. Better stay sober."

"Save it for when we defeat Rita."

"Exactly!"

"Then we'll do this again, and—" Tommy's eyes went wide as he realized what he had just said. He glanced askance. "I mean, we'll cook a nice dinner again…"

Kimberly tried to catch his eyes. "_Just_ the dinner?"

Tommy beamed.

Then Kimberly put on a thoughtful expression, and changed the subject. "You know, I don't mean to pry, but… I just thought about what you said earlier, that you'd learned a lot from us. I'm really curious, what did you mean?"

_Oh, boy._ This might be intense—too intense to tell a girl. It might turn her off.

But after what had just happened, it might be nice to come clean.

Tommy took a deep breath. "It's complicated. I'm not sure I understand it. But I'm starting to think it's… you know… I never knew what it was like to have a normal family like any of yours. I was adopted."

Kimberly sat up straight, looking a bit curious. "But… that's good, isn't it? I mean… it makes you kind of special. Like you went home with parents who really _wanted_ you and picked you out."

Tommy shook his head. "You'd think. I don't know; both my parents are engineers, really brainy and mathematical… I do okay at school, but I'm just not gonna be a science wizard like Billy, you know? And my dad played football. Me, I've always just been into karate, martial arts."

"But you're totally awesome at it!"

Tommy raised his eyebrows and blushed a little. He knew he was good, even if it was a little embarrassing to hear someone say it. "Well, you know… I guess it's just not a social sport like football or baseball."

"So?"

"I mean, overall, I don't think the way I've turned out is exactly what my parents were hoping… what they would've wanted from their own kid." Tommy shrugged. "As I got older, they stopped spending time with me. They sent me to boarding school from first through fifth grade. I saw them maybe four days a month. And then, like, you said your parents took you to—to Mass, you mean, church? Are you Catholic?"

"Yeah," said Kimberly. "I mean, we _were_. Well… we don't really go to church anymore, unless we're with Grandma or Aunt Corrine but… I don't know. I _guess_ we're still Catholic. But you were saying?"

"See, my parents are Methodist. They didn't go to church every Sunday, but pretty often. They had me baptized when they adopted me, but after I got back from boarding school… see, I'd be watching TV in the living room on Sunday morning, and the church was just up the street, and they'd say 'bye' as they walked through to go out… they didn't make me go to church—or even ask if I wanted to go with them."

"Oh, my gosh!" gasped Kimberly. "That's _awful_!" Her jaw hung open. "And they even call themselves Christians! But _why_? Why would they have adopted a kid if they didn't want to spend time with him?"

"Well, like I said, I'm not at all like my parents. I'm not a math genius or a football hero. I guess when they figured that out they realized they would've have a son who'd 'carry on' like they knew to get involved in, so they just pulled back."

"You think they wanted you to be just like a genetic kid would've been?" Kimberly looked disgusted. "That's stupid!"

Tommy shrugged. "I don't really know," he said. "That's just what I think. But you know… in my boarding school we had a dojo—that was pretty rare at the time, but this one just happened to have one. So when I got back to Los Angeles I stuck with karate since I liked it and I was already pretty good… and Sensei Kentaro invited me to his house a couple of times. He was married with three kids and they were a really traditional Japanese family and they were nice… but I don't think I realized until just now why I liked going over there. It's like it was a clue in on… how things were supposed to be. Something I couldn't learn at home." He looked into Kimberly's eyes. "And now that I think about it, maybe that's why I found you and Jase and the others so fascinating right from the start."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Tommy sat back into the couch. "Like it gets me thinking… if I ever have a family I want to do it right. It's always seemed so far off—it still does—but if you don't have a good situation you really have to think in advance and try to learn."

"There isn't any perfect family, really, Tommy," Kimberly admitted. "I guess all you can do is find someone you can believe in and believe in yourself enough to help that person back when things don't go okay."

"Wow." Tommy smiled. "That's beautiful, Kim." His felt his heart accelerate just a bit.

"Really?" Kimberly giggled just a bit. "Not that I know exactly what it means to believe in someone."

_Do I say it? _Tommy wondered to himself._ No, it's too soon. But we… what if I don't get another…_

Tommy gulped.

"What is it?" Kimberly cut into his anxieties.

_Aww, man. It shows._ "Ah, nothing. Bit of cartilage," he lied.

* * *

Still in their blanket and sheet, Tommy and Kimberly, the latter under the former's arm, half-enjoyed an episode of _Brideshead Revisited_, neither particularly concentrated on the story as it unfolded, both too excited by the events of the past two hours. Though they did—especially Kimberly—admire the cinematography.

"Such a pretty house," she murmured. "Do you ever think maybe you'd want to live there?"

"Aww man. That would be nice."

"Yeah." Kimberly looked up at her boyfriend. "But I like Angel Grove just fine, too."

"It's where we are right now."

"Yeah. And everything we love."

Tommy kissed the hair on top of her head. And said nothing more.

That bothered Kimberly just a bit. Was it supposed to mean, 'I love you'? Or would he say it later? Or maybe he wouldn't say it… ever? Maybe this was too fast?

_No. No, don't think that. He'll say it later._

She just wanted to enjoy this.

All she could.

"I've never been so bad before in my life," she admitted.

Tommy sighed. "I was really bad," he said. "Under Rita."

"Oh, Tommy that's not the same. Even if I think you're cute when you're bad."

Tommy glanced at her, surprised. "_What_?"

"You know what I mean!" she insisted, lightly punching him. "It's a joke, silly."

And they began to kiss again.

"_Morphenomenal_…" Kimberly whispered as Tommy moved down to her neck.

* * *

Two weeks later, a column of pink light touched down in the Command Center and gave way to form Kimberly.

"Welcome, Pink Ranger," bade Zordon. "I have called you here alone to discuss a matter of personal importance to you, and I felt it was best to do so discreetly."

"What is it?" Kimberly asked nervously. A million thoughts raced through her mind.

"During your battle with the Pumpkin Rapper yesterday, Alpha picked up an unusual reading of your biorhythms when we got the distress signal from you and the other Rangers. As a matter of precaution I wanted to summon you back here for a scan."

Before Kimberly could react, Alpha approached her with an electromagnetic bio-read wand. "Just a moment, Kimberly!" the robot said. "This won't hurt a bit." Three seconds later, he switched the wand off. "There! That does it." He plugged the wand back into the computer. "Ai-yi-yi! Zordon!"

"I see. This is serious indeed. Kimberly, it may be too early in for you to have known under normal circumstances, but given the implications for the Power mission, I feel I should inform you now that you are pregnant."

"I'm what?"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	2. News of a New

_**Maman  
**_Part II: News of a New  
**by MegaSilver**

"No."

Kimberly's lips began moving in what appeared to be a stammering pattern, but no sound came out.

Alpha put a hand over hers. "Come now, Kimberly! Everything will be okay."

Irritated, Kimberly jerked her hand away but instantly felt bad about having done so. "Oh, Alpha," she whispered. He really was a sweetheart, but she wondered whether he believed what he was saying any more than she did.

Which of course was to say not much.

"Kimberly, is there something you need to discuss?" asked Zordon. "Please don't be afraid." He spoke as gently as a remote being could, but his powerful voice still struck terror into Kimberly's heart at a moment such as this.

"I—no, there's nothing." Kimberly blinked. "I mean… no one hurt me, or anything. I…" She took a deep breath. "Tommy's the father. It can't be anyone else."

"Ah." Zordon paused. "I might have suspected as much. Pink Ranger, listen to me very carefully. Things will not be easy for quite some time forward. The most important thing for you to do is to stay calm and get some rest. Remember that you have friends and trust that they will not abandon you. _I_ will not abandon you. Becoming a Ranger is not without risk, but we will find a way to work things out."

Kimberly felt queasy at that thought. Work things out? What did that mean? Off the team, or worse—

"Please trust me, Kimberly. I will not pull any unpleasant surprises on you. If I am speaking cryptically, it is because I do not yet know how things will unfold."

* * *

Kimberly rocked gently next to Tommy on the porch swing. He looked as though he were in shock, and Kimberly, just 24 hours after her meeting with Zordon, scarcely looked better.

Tommy blinked rapidly. Thoughts cycled through his head just as rapidly.

_I'm a dad._

_I'm going to have a kid!_

_Kimberly's going to have my baby!_

_What if—something goes wrong?_

_Will my parents kick me out?_

_I can't afford a family! I'm not ready!_

_Where can I possibly get a good enough job?_

_What about school?_

_What if we break up?_

_What if I ask her to marry me?_

_What if our parents say no?_

_Kimberly—how can she still be a Power Ranger if she's pregnant… or nursing?_

"_Wow_," he breathed at last. "Aww, man."

Kimberly stood up slowly. "I have to tell the others. I… asked them to meet me at Billy's house."

Tommy's eyes went wide. "Are you kidding? Right away? But—"

"Tommy, you know we have to!" Kimberly insisted. "It's the fight that's at stake."

"Oh, Kim!" Tommy sighed. He pulled himself to his feet and pulled Kimberly towards him. "I've never been used to sharing. Even since I became a Ranger I tried to keep a bit of distance but… you're all so wonderful and—sometimes so wonderful I can't even dare…"

Kimberly looked into his eyes and swallowed. At the same time that she asked, "Would you come with me?" Tommy uttered, "I'm going with you."

"I did this, Kimberly," he insisted. "We did it together. I'll face whatever consequences with you. All the way."

"Thank you."

It was over and above himself to say those words. But he tried not to think about the heavy burden they implied and _just mean it_. How to pay the price would be a worry for another day.

* * *

Jason, Zack, Billy and Trini stood at a bit of a distance from Tommy and Kimberly in Billy's lab. This was definitely not expected news.

"You—you guys…" Jason looked Tommy in the eye. "It didn't even occur to you that this might happen? You didn't think that—"

"We made a mistake!" Kimberly cried. "But it's done now."

Jason approached the couple midway to speak as leader. This felt awful, but it had to be done. "Look. Kimberly, we need you on the team! Tommy, you too! You know that! You know we can't call Megazord or Ultrazord or use the Power Blaster without the Pink Ranger!" He shook his head.

And the more he thought about it, the more irritated he became. How could they _do_ this?!

"Tommy," he sighed, "man, what is it with you? I was glad to have you on the team, glad to have you back. And then right away, you—" He took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. "Look, we need to work something out. There's no way we can go for nine months—or even six—without the Pink Ranger."

"'Work something out'?" Kimberly gasped. "What do you mean by that, huh? Who do you think you are, huh? Let's get something straight right up, okay? I am _not_ having an abortion! _Not_ an option! I'm not gonna say I spent my youth trying to save people's lives just so I can feel better that I killed my own kid!"

"Kimberly!" Jason was somewhat appalled. What on Earth would make her think he would be suggesting something along those lines? "_I_ didn't bring that up, you did!"

"Then what did you mean, we'd have to 'work something out'?" Kimberly looked up at Tommy. "What did he mean, Tommy?!"

"Kim, it'll be okay!" Tommy tried to reassure her. "Jason…"

Tommy was putting up a good front, but Jason saw through it. He thought his teammate might start trembling. And right now he was scarcely in the mood to think anything but, _Good. He'd better._

Trini sailed over to her best friend and put a hand on her shoulder. "Kim, look. It'll be all right. Let's go to my house and we'll get something to eat and talk, okay?" She looked up at Tommy, as though seeking approval. Jason was a bit annoyed at that, but happy that Trini would step in.

"No, I want to stay with you!" Kimberly protested to Tommy."

"Kim… go with Trini," Tommy advised. "I'll come by later to take you home, okay? I promise."

"But—"

"Kim, we'll work this out. In a good way. I promise." Tommy's voice was weaker than usual, a sure sign he could scarcely believe in what he was saying. For a minute Jason almost felt sorry for them: this would have been rough without the scolding.

But as a purely disciplinary matter, Jason knew he couldn't let this go without a good dose of frankness.

"Kimberly, come on. You won't come out well if you stay," Trini pleaded.

Kimberly wiped a tear away from her eye. "I'm sorry," she said. "I just don't know what to think! I'm going to be a mother and part of me wants to think it's wonderful but what's happening is just so awful… and somehow I just feel so good and so awful all at once and—" She let out a soft sob and finally pulled away from Tommy and into Trini's arms. Looking back at her boyfriend with sad eyes, she tried one more time. "Tommy?"

"I'll pick you up at seven-thirty, okay?" was his answer.

Kimberly sniffled. "Okay." And with that, she was led out of the lab by her trusty friend.

Once they were gone, Tommy turned to Jason and appeared to regain some spine. "What did you yell at her for, huh? Can't you figure out she's scared enough?"

Jason welcomed the opportunity to explain. "I _didn't_ yell. You don't like my tone, you can take it up with Zordon, all right?"

Tommy seemed a bit off-put, but he seemed willing to back down.

"I know this is hard for you both, but this isn't something that's normal for this team."

"Oh, you think I don't know that?"

"Obviously, you didn't care enough to pay more attention that night!"

Tommy gritted his teeth and looked at the floor.

Jason approached Tommy. He really was torn. He really admired Tommy both as a friend as a fighter. But as a teammate… well, he was having a really hard time not remembering that Rita and not Zordon had chosen this one.

Still, maybe a little gentleness couldn't hurt. "Man, this stuff is serious. People get hurt. We're here to protect them. We have a mission, a _responsibility_. Now you and Kim have a kid. That's a whole other responsibility. It puts this whole thing at a compromise, you see?"

Tommy looked back up at Jason. "Jason, I'm sorry. I know I failed as her boyfriend, as a friend and as a Ranger. I just want to make it right. I don't know how, but… I think there has to be a way. Zordon told Kimberly he'd stand by her."

Jason took a deep breath. Indeed, Zordon. He wouldn't have ever been able to predict how his mentor might react. Now that he heard it, for a moment he felt a bit resentful, if only because he instinctively enjoyed the conflict or the heat.

But his cool head reminded him to trust the wizard.

And to listen to his own heart.

"And we will, too," Jason assured Tommy. "And by you." He turned to face Billy and Zack, heretofore silent, the both of them. "What do you say guys?"

"Definitely!" Zack nodded firmly.

"Affirmative!" Billy wore a huge grin.

Jason turned back to Tommy. "We're here for you, man. All the way. That's our promise. But there's gonna be problems ahead. And we need _you_ to promise you'll do whatever you can to mitigate them—whatever that might entail." He simply couldn't bring himself to say, _up to and including giving up your powers_. He didn't _want_ that to be necessary. But the look of brokenness, of near-dejection, on Tommy's face suggested that the message had come across pretty clearly.

"I will." Tommy nodded. "Unconditionally. I'm sure Kimberly will, too."

"I know," said Jason. He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Look, though… for what it's worth, I just want to say, congratulations."

Tommy began to laugh. "Thanks, man."

Zack and Billy came forth to give their teammate a back pat. "You're awesome, dude!" Zack remarked, pulling Tommy into a bear hug.

"My sincerest felicitations on your contribution to the human genome," Billy bade, with more sincerity than his vocabulary would ever suggest. "I've no doubt the particular recombination will represent a most impressive step in primate evolution."

The others cracked up at that, and Tommy even shed a tear of joy. "Aww, guys. I never thought anything like this could happen. I never thought I could have friends like this. I'll do everything I can to get us all through this. I don't want any of you to pay. I owe that to you." He swallowed and looked at his friends one by one. "You don't know how much all of this means to me."

Jason smiled. _Maybe more than you think we do._

Truth was, Jason knew, everyone on the team adored Tommy. Why? Was it the paucity with which he showed up—and the spectacular display he made each time he did? Was it that he could be so irritating and yet so irresistible?

Little matter. This was definitely a friendship for the books. And though Jason felt guilty for thinking so, a part of him was actually quite happy to be there for a difficult moment—and assure his place as a friend for life.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


End file.
